IS GOD FINISHED WITH THE LOCAL CHURCH

THE FUNDAMENTALIST DIGEST

POST OFFICE BOX 489

 

Harold Camping is a prominent religious radio host. His “Family Radio” network  has more than 150 stations and translators in the USA, with an income of more than $12 million dollars annually. In recent months, Camping has been telling his listeners to abandon all  local churches because the “church age has ended” and Satan has supposedly taken control of all organized assemblies of professing believers. Therefore believers should exclusively  “worship privately in their homes” with “no leaders, no baptism and no communion.” In response, the FD editor would like his readers to note the following Biblical truths.

1. The church age has not concluded, since the rapture has not yet occurred.  The present church age will consummate with the rapture of the saints in the air, the next prophetic event on God’s time clock   (I Cor. 15:5l-58, I Thes. 4:13-18). While the rapture is an imminent-any moment occurrence-it had not yet occurred at the time this article was being penned. Until then, believing saints should expectantly look for that blessed occurrence in the skies (Titus 2:11-13) and continue to meet in united assemblies (Acts 2:47).

2. The local church is still God’s central organism in this age (I Tim. 3:15) for the fulfilling of the Great Commission Mandate (Matt. 28:19-20). The responsibility of (a) Evangelizing [“Go ye therefore and teach all nations”), (b) baptizing [“baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son  and of the Holy Ghost”], and (c) catechizing [“teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you”] requires the ministry and presence of local churches.

3. Satan has not captured control of all local churches. God is still saving souls via the ministry of faithful local N.T. assemblies. While the Laodicean church represents the apostate state of modern Christendom (Rev. 3:14-19), the Philadelphian witness continues via scattered congregations that are steadfastly adhering to God’s preserved Word (Rev. 3:9), as well as fervently “holding forth the word of life” (Phil. 2:15).

4. Our Lord is building His ministry outside the structure of the organized ecclesiastical world (Heb. 13:13, Rev. 3:20), via the proclamation of the gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). The Scripture distinctly states there will be a great apostasy in the last days (I Tim. 4:1-2, II Tim. 3:1-7, II Tim. 4:3-4) and that organized Christianity will be permeated with false prophets who will deceive the masses of humanity (II Peter 2:1-3). This massive apostasy does not negate the Great Commission labors for N.T. churches.

5.  Legitimate  local N. T.  churches can meet in  homes  for   worship, fellowship  and  instruction (I Cor. 16:19,  Col.  4:15,   Philemon  2),   but   bishops (overseers-pastors) and deacons (servants-helpers) still constitute God’s operational plan for N. T. assemblies (Phil. 1:1). In apostolic times, when there were no buildings available, churches assembled in the home of believing saints.  Hundreds of healthy N.T. congregations today trace their origins to godly homes where local lighthouses began their witness. There are small pockets of believers today across America who gather in homes together, praying for the day when a strong N. T. witness can be established in their area.

6. The ordinances of the local church, baptism (Acts 2:41) and the Lord’s Table (I Cor. 11:23-32) are divinely decreed N.T. statutes (I Cor. 11:2), that should be observed until Christ’s return (Matt. 28:18-20, I Cor.11:26).  As burdened Christians  fulfill Christ’s command of the Great Commission (Mark 16:15), new believers continue to obey our Lord’s injunction concerning baptism, as well experience intimate communion with the Lord and other saints around the Lord’s Table.

7. Christ is still building His church today and the gates of hell cannot not prevail against it (Matt. 16:18). While the apostasy will greatly mount, and more churches than ever will capitulate to the devil’s counterfeits, all Satanic attempts to crush and exterminate the church will fail. Until the rapture, there will always be N.T. based companies of saints who stand for the faith. Some Assemblies are small and struggling, while others are larger and thriving but  N.T. churches, in totality, cannot be extinguished.

Harold Camping is tragically mistaken! With grateful praise to His name, it can be factually stated that God is not finished with the churches, at least not the ones that continue to earnestly contend for the faith (Jude 3) and to disseminate the gospel message around the globe (Mark 16:15).  PS: Ever since his conversion over 55 years ago, the F.D. editor has been associated with N.T. congregations of saints, a practice he does not intend to abandon.  (Neither does the Editor of THE FLAMING TORCH)